Automobile Insurance Queries? Ask me

This is a discussion on Automobile Insurance Queries? Ask me within Indian Car Loans & Insurance, part of the Team-BHP Reviews category; Hi All, need opinions on the below insurance queries from the gurus here ASAP on one of the claims.
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Hi All, need opinions on the below insurance queries from the gurus here ASAP on one of the claims.

1. Is the total cost of labour covered fully under a package policy ?
2. Cosumables include oils, coolants, grease etc, basically fluids. Does this category include anything else?
3. Is it right to classify the below items under Rubber/Plastic category. I believe they come under metal. Please clarify i am wrong.

Guys
The insurance of my2010 fortuner expires on 19th January. Yesterday I received online quotes from three providers , Bajaj Allianz, Reliance (my current provider) and Royal Sundaram. Reliance provided the lowest quote and Sundaram the highest. I don't want to associate with Reliance in anyway,so opted for Bajaj Allianz.

The online process was extremely smooth. Received the soft copy of the policy on my mail and they will be sending a hard copy of the same.
Cheers
Dilip kumar

Adi22: apologies for the delayed response primarily due to my travel to Kashmir with limited access to net. Labour is fully covered in comprehensive policy. Apart from what you mentioned any nut bolts or small items costing less then ₹100 is also considered as consumable item.
Radiator - metal
Reservoir Assembly - Plastic
Intercooler - has an upper & bottom casing of plastic but main part is made up of copper. Ins. Cos. consider it as Plastic but you can always put across your point and get 100%
Engine Cooling Fan- plastic
Water Pump- depends from car to car, is made up of metal and plastic both
Wiring Harness Assy- plastic
Glow Plug Controller- plastic

0and1: since the vehicle is not insured, get it done ASAP at previous owners name and then get the endorsement done on your name the moment you get a new R.C. Keep insurance co. Informed preferably via email that ownership change is under process.
Ideally, no company gives zero dep post 3 years of vehicle registration but I have heard that Tata AIG started doing it a couple of months back. There cannot be any special cover for airbags other then zero dep.
No matter from whichever city you buy insurance you can log a claim anywhere in India. The only issue is it would not be a cashless claim but one on reimbursement basis.
Trust this helps.

Last edited by moralfibre : 19th January 2014 at 22:06.
Reason: Back to back posts. Please use EDIT/MULTI-QUOTE within 30 minutes of posting.

1. Do I have to first get the insurance done at previous owners name and then get it transferred?

2. What are the things I should be keeping in mind to renew a expired insurance? Is it possible to get a 0 DEP cover? If not, can I still get my airbags covered?

3. Can the insurance be claimed in another city if the car is driven there for a while, if it has been renewed in a different city?

Answering your questions serially:
1) Since the previous insurance has expired, it will be like buying a fresh insurance. No need to get the insurance done on previous owner's name. You can buy it in your name provided the car ownership transfer formalities have been completed and the RC shows your name as the current owner.
2) if you are renewing from Tata AIG, a rep will visit to inspect the car or you might have to drive to the Insurance co to get the vehicle inspected. If Tata Aig provides zero dep for 4 yrs old cars, then you can buy it, but bear in mind it might be expensive. There is no seperate add on for covering the airbags, it is covered under zero dep.
3) Yes the claim can be made in other cities provided you visit the Honda authorized showroom which has a cashless tie up with Tata or you can enquire with Tata with which workshops do they have the cashless tie up in the cities you are intending to visit.

Query on zero depreciation insurance (disclaimer - I haven't yet read the discussions on such policies in other threads here at TBHP, sorry!)

My car (Swift Dzire 2009 model) is just few days short of turning 5 years old and insurance is up for renewal soon.
So far I have taken comprehensive insurance each year (United India Insurance), but now thinking about a zero depreciation policy this year.

-Am I be eligible to get such a policy ?
-What could the approximate Premium amount be (location Bangalore) ?
-Which insurance company would you recommend ?

My car (Swift Dzire 2009 model) is just few days short of turning 5 years old and insurance is up for renewal soon.
So far I have taken comprehensive insurance each year (United India Insurance), but now thinking about a zero depreciation policy this year.
-Am I be eligible to get such a policy ?
-What could the approximate Premium amount be (location Bangalore) ?
-Which insurance company would you recommend ?

Sorry mate, I guess you came in late. Most of the Insurance co offer zero dep for cars upto 5 years of ownership although a handful of them only. I havent heard of any Insurance co offering zero dep for more than 5 yrs old cars. I guess you might have to continue with the comprehensive Insurance as before. If you happen to come across anyone offering the same, pls do let us know.

If you havent made any claims in your 5 yr ownership, do you still want zero dep add on?

-Am I be eligible to get such a policy ?
-What could the approximate Premium amount be (location Bangalore) ?
-Which insurance company would you recommend ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ghodlur

Sorry mate, I guess you came in late. Most of the Insurance co offer zero dep for cars upto 5 years of ownership although a handful of them only. I havent heard of any Insurance co offering zero dep for more than 5 yrs old cars. I guess you might have to continue with the comprehensive Insurance as before. If you happen to come across anyone offering the same, pls do let us know.

If you havent made any claims in your 5 yr ownership, do you still want zero dep add on?

I think ghodlur is right. I have not seen any insurance company having Zero depreciation policy for 3+ years old car. Even if it is there, the premium might be huge. When I took Zero depreciation for a 2yr old car, the difference was around 5K.

In case of any major accident, I think zero depreciation policy is not going to help because in my case Maruti/Royal Sundaram is pushing for a cash settlement of the IDV.

Ghodlur: I beg to differ on point 1 and 3 explained to 0and1. Ownership change process takes approximately 10-12 days (min.). We should remember that car is without any insurance I.e, not even 3rd party cover. I am assuming that 0and1 will be driving this vehicle during transfer process which is illegal and can result in major issue in case of any mishap.
As far as cashless facility is concerned...no insurance company extends this facility PAN India as of now. So if a policy was bought in Pune and car meets with an accident anywhere in Maharashtra it will be cashless however if the same accident might have happened in Gujrat there would have been no cashless facility. This is primarily due to premium earned in office of one region but surveyor and workshop belonging to another region. The only exception is manufacturer tie up policy which in this case is called Honda Assure. Also for pre inspection of a car one doesn't have to go anywhere the insurance co. Arranges for one at a preferred address and time given by the insured.

Ghodlur: I beg to differ on point 1 and 3 explained to 0and1. Ownership change process takes approximately 10-12 days (min.). We should remember that car is without any insurance I.e, not even 3rd party cover. I am assuming that 0and1 will be driving this vehicle during transfer process which is illegal and can result in major issue in case of any mishap.

Point taken Carzealot. I have always advocated that change in ownership of the car and the Insurance ownership should happen simultaneously in order to avoid running the car without any Insurance. In this case 0and1 had known that the insurance had expired, ideally he shouldnt be using the car till he gets a valid insurance which would be a fresh insurance.

Quote:

As far as cashless facility is concerned...no insurance company extends this facility PAN India as of now. So if a policy was bought in Pune and car meets with an accident anywhere in Maharashtra it will be cashless however if the same accident might have happened in Gujrat there would have been no cashless facility. This is primarily due to premium earned in office of one region but surveyor and workshop belonging to another region. The only exception is manufacturer tie up policy which in this case is called Honda Assure.

I beg to disagree here. As long as the Insurer provide Pan India insurance, they will have to provide claim reimbursement Pan India too. It will not be limited to a particular state from where the Insurance is provided. There are many threads on the forum where users have lodged claim in different state altogther from where the insurance was bought. Let me dig more into the proof to substantiate this.

Quote:

Also for pre inspection of a car one doesn't have to go anywhere the insurance co. Arranges for one at a preferred address and time given by the insured

Try this with National Insurance or Oriental Insurance and the picture is different altogther.

Sorry mate, I guess you came in late. Most of the Insurance co offer zero dep for cars upto 5 years of ownership although a handful of them only. I havent heard of any Insurance co offering zero dep for more than 5 yrs old cars. I guess you might have to continue with the comprehensive Insurance as before. If you happen to come across anyone offering the same, pls do let us know.

Quote:

Originally Posted by arun_josie

I think ghodlur is right. I have not seen any insurance company having Zero depreciation policy for 3+ years old car. Even if it is there, the premium might be huge. When I took Zero depreciation for a 2yr old car, the difference was around 5K.

Thanks ghodlur and arun - called the insurance folks today and came to know that only zero depreciation policies are only for cars less than 3 years old.
Still contemplating renewal of United India policy Vs Maruti insurance (they offer New India Assurance & Bajaj Allianz). Which would you recommend ?

Only advantage of taking it from Maruti is the (seemingly) seamless & cashless claims process.

*I haven't had any issues with United India so far, but they do not send renewal notices and I need to visit their office nearby which has not been an issue so far

Thanks ghodlur and arun - called the insurance folks today and came to know that only zero depreciation policies are only for cars less than 3 years old.
Still contemplating renewal of United India policy Vs Maruti insurance (they offer New India Assurance & Bajaj Allianz). Which would you recommend ?

Only advantage of taking it from Maruti is the (seemingly) seamless & cashless claims process.

*I haven't had any issues with United India so far, but they do not send renewal notices and I need to visit their office nearby which has not been an issue so far

As long as the repair cost is on the lower side, maruti insurance is fine. If there is an issue with the approval of repair cost/IDV payment, maruti will not interfere and you will have to fight with insurance company directly, this is from my current experience.